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Metro Bank secures £120m in funding

The challenger bank is in need of funding to back its aggressive growth strategy
February 22, 2019

Metro Bank (MTRO) received the largest chunk of the so-called capability and innovation fund, designed to boost competition within the UK banking sector. The troubled challenger bank was granted £120m in funding from the scheme, which is being paid for by Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) as part of the conditions of its 2009 bailout.

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Chief executive Craig Donaldson said the funds would be used to “bring much needed competition to the underserved SME hotspots in the North, while investing in our digital capabilities and creating new jobs”.

In January, the group warned that profits and regulatory capital levels for 2018 would be below expectations, after it was forced to increase the risk weighting assigned to certain commercial loans secured on property and certain specialist buy-to-let loans.